Boys facial hair - is this true

amother

Sand

Wed, May 31 2023, 5:32 pm

Reality wrote:

How in the world do you know info about your son's privates?

I find the entire vibe on this thread is a little off.

Why is this off? Doesn't your dh know when your girls get their period?

amother

Lavender

Wed, May 31 2023, 5:44 pm

My son has been growing very tall in the last few months since he turned 14 he's around 5"5 now.
I notice his voice is somewhat deeper but not all the way. The fuzz on his upper lip is turning dark if I look closely. I don't have information about other parts of his body. He doesn't tell and I don't see or ask.

amother

Wed, May 31 2023, 5:56 pm

amother Lavender wrote:

this sounds exactly like my son- voice deeper but not all the way- but at 12. which I keep asking is it too young.

amother

Wed, May 31 2023, 5:57 pm

Reality wrote:

How in the world do you know info about your son's privates?

I find the entire vibe on this thread is a little off.

he told me.

there are so many discussions on here about being open with kids about their developing bodies
that I honestly dont know whats so surprising and why this had to be reported.

amother

DarkViolet

Wed, May 31 2023, 6:04 pm

amother OP wrote:

this sounds exactly like my son- voice deeper but not all the way- but at 12. which I keep asking is it too young.

Still not clear on what the point of your question is. Kids develop differently, some earlier, some later, 12 is not too young to be going through puberty and specific maturity (hair etc) is individual in how quickly or early or late it happens. Why don’t you ask your pediatrician and if you are concerned get a growth plate xray done?

amother

Wed, May 31 2023, 6:26 pm

amother DarkViolet wrote:

they wont give it to me. everyone just brushes off my concern. anything extra needs to be done private. I have no insurance.

thought I would ask others on here when their boys started developing and whats the norm...

its a very normal question- is 12 too young?

amother

Purple

Wed, May 31 2023, 6:30 pm

my son is 14 with a little fuzz on his upper lip. hasn't had growth spurt yet. still a short 5 ft, child voice. (no idea what's going on private parts) late developer genes...most of his friends have changed voices and more facial hair, most have cracky voices or deep.

amother

DarkViolet

Wed, May 31 2023, 6:41 pm

amother OP wrote:

Certainly seems in the range of normal. And if it was young? What would you do? If your pediatrician is not concerned, I wouldn’t be concerned. If it means your son may be on the shorter end, so what?

amother

Cadetblue

Wed, May 31 2023, 6:59 pm

12 is a very normal age to start a peach fuzz moustache.
My son was 11 when he started and at now 16 he still just has the fuzzy moustache and is barely just starting a bit of beard hairs.
Some kids grow very quickly. Some very drawn out. Boys can still grow until 20.

amother

Jean

Wed, May 31 2023, 7:37 pm

amother OP wrote:

he told me.

there are so many discussions on here about being open with kids about their developing bodies
that I honestly dont know whats so surprising and why this had to be reported.

I told my DS that it would happen, but he didn't report back to me when/if it did.

I do think that 12 is young for a boy to begin puberty.

My DS's facial hair on his upper lip started now at age 14 and he's growing by leaps and bounds. He was an average height at his bar mitzva, a few inches shorter than my height (I'm close to 5'5"). By now, a little over a year later, he's very clearly taller than me. No voice change yet.

DH developed early, right after his bar mitzva. He outgrew his bar mitzva clothes a few weeks after his BM. He saw his first beard hair at 13 and tried to remove it because no one else in his class had anything yet. At 16 he had a full beard already.

amother

Hawthorn

Wed, May 31 2023, 7:51 pm

My son developed early, he was shaving a real mustache before his bar mitzvah. At the time he was 5.6. He’s now 15 and stopped growing about six months ago at 5.11. He was shaving a pretty full beard around when his growth stopped. Sefirah was interesting. He can easily pass as a 20 year old now. Someone in shul on shavuos asked if he’s in shidduchim. I said no but he’s in tenth grade…

amother

DarkPurple

Wed, May 31 2023, 8:36 pm

amother OP wrote:

they may have continued till 10th grade but when did real puberty start?
hair on private part. voice deepening growth spurt...

if they only had this and no other symptoms they are not in real puberty yet...

Puberty can be a slow process for boys, there’s no one defining moment like there is for girls. Boys can have many growth spurts or they can grow steadily over that same time without any fast jumps, hair can grow in over the course of a few years, voice can change overnight or never really change etc.
If you feel like it’s all happening very quickly then yes I think he’s on the young side but not young enough that I would start running to specialists.

amother

Almond

Wed, May 31 2023, 8:55 pm

I don’t think it’s early either.
You’re not going to get one clear answer. Even just looking at facial hair there is so much variation.
My son just turned 16, he’s 6 foot tall and has been for a while. He grew a lot the year of his bar mitzvah and it slowed down since, but I don’t think he has totally stopped growing yet. His facial hair has started growing, mostly side burns. Some of his friends started on their upper lip, some more on the chin area. Each their own pattern. It’s not like there’s a set formula.